beautiful maternity underwear

With our resident blogger away on maternity leave (our founder Jules!) and enjoying being Mummy to new baby Sacha, we’ve invited a few “guests” to share their birth stories with us.

Introducing Dani Diosi, an experienced Antenatal & Childbirth educator. Whilst teaching for the National Childbirth Trust, she utilized her own experience with twins to also hold multiple birth classes. Subsequently qualifying in Natal Hypnotherapy, she furthered her training and qualified as a hypnotherapist and EFT practitioner.

In addition to her Natal Hypnotherapy courses she also trains midwives and other birth professionals on the benefits of the above treatments. Her common sense approach is reflected in her home life where, as the mother of three girls she’s a firm believer that there’s no such thing as the perfect parent – we can all only do our best!

“I found out that I was expecting non-identical twins when I was 12 weeks pregnant. I joke about it now, but it was an extremely good thing that I was lying down when they told me – because the surprise of it completely bowled me over. Of all the things that one thinks about when going for their first scan, multiple pregnancy was way down on the list – actually, come to think of it, it wasn’t even featured!!

However, from that moment on, I was confronted with doom and gloom everywhere I went. From friends and family: “Oh crikey! You mean you’ve got to get two out??” To the medical profession: “[intake of breath] Well if you make it to 35 weeks you will be lucky! Having twins is risky and of course there is even more of a risk to the second twin! You will have to have an epidural!”

At the time, I knew no different and went along with everyone’s increasing anxiety which of course added to mine several times over. When I finally went into labour (at 39 weeks plus 4 days, by the way!!!!!) we rushed into hospital as I had been told to do and I was actually fine. Stopping every few minutes to have a contraction, moving around, breathing – it all seemed pretty instinctive. I was shown into the room where I was to labour with my babies, they told me to lie down on the bed so that they could attach the monitors to me and that is where it stopped being fine. The pain became unbearable but every time I tried to move to cope with it, I was told off for causing the monitors to lose the heartbeats. I kept telling myself that it would be ok, because I knew that the epidural would be along any minute. But it never came. There was a query over whether or not I had a condition that would cause my blood to clot too effectively (i.e. cause an embolism) so I was not allowed an epidural. Now I know that is not necessarily a bad thing but at the time I got scared. Not just because I was climbing the walls with the pain but because I had been constantly told that I would HAVE to have an epidural because “it was dangerous to deliver twins without one!” So in my mind, my babies were now in mortal danger. Long story short, they were born vaginally and they were ok but I have never been so frightened or felt so out of control of any situation in my life. I remember thinking at the time “this is ridiculous, I know I have just had two babies but surely a woman is supposed to give birth and I am sure it should not be anything like what I have just experienced!”

My feelings about that were so strong that I decided to train to become an antenatal teacher so that I could help women to have positive birth experiences. I trained with the National Childbirth Trust and then came across Natal Hypnotherapy™ (www.natalhypnotherapy.co.uk) which works on the principle that the more calm and relaxed the mother is during her labour the better it is for both her and her baby – not exactly rocket science is it? Adrenaline (produced by our bodies when we are scared, or anxious, or embarrassed) cancels out the powerful labour hormones that help birth to progress effectively and consistently, making the process much longer and much more painful. When a woman is calm and relaxed, the production of these labour hormones minimise the risk of complications. It is not about ‘pain-free’ labour because there is a reason why women need to feel their contractions (that’s another whole blog post!) but it is about working with the contractions to effectively birth a baby and not suffering from them.

I alongside all the other Natal Hypnotherapy™ practitioners have help thousands of parents to make a real difference to their birth experiences by empowering them with a real understanding of the birth process and what it needs as well as what it doesn’t. The techniques to help them keep calm and relaxed are incredibly effective and truly prepares them (and gives them!) a better birth. Natal Hypnotherapy™ can be used in any type of birth whether that is the most peaceful, intimate, home water birth or a highly medicalised twin birth or a caesarean section because a calm and relaxed mother is going to result in a calm and relaxed baby.

Do I wish I had known about Natal Hypnotherapy™ when I had my babies? Absolutely. But then, if I had not had the experience I did, I may not have gone on to learn the things I have learnt and maybe wouldn’t be in the privileged position I am now of helping parents at the most exciting time in their lives.”